Weekend Recap

Our weekend seems like it was busy, but it was actually a lot slower because there was no soccer!

We were able to hang out around the house Saturday morning until Wyatt's baseball game after lunch.

 These two boys played so well on Saturday!  Wyatt pitched and Hunter played first and they were able to get lots of outs!

 Throwing the ball to Hunter.

 Reese, Finley and I left the game early to go to Ryan's birthday party.  Reese had the time of her life playing at The Little Gym with Ryan and some of her other friends from school.

We started Sunday at Wawa and Target, and then went to my parents' house for lunch.  Mason was in town and we wanted to visit with him!

Cousins on the swing!

 I tried to get a picture of all 5 of the kids together...this is how that went...

 Last night when I asked Hudson what his favorite thing about his day was, he said, "hot dogs with Mason!" Ha!

Now if we asked Reese what her favorite thing about yesterday was, she will say this...

 Baba got her her very own tomato plants, and he taught her how to plant them.  This child was sooooo excited.  She said she had to wear her "work clothes," and she wouldn't leave the house without her "gardening gloves and gardening hat."

 So much fun!

Of course, when I leave the house for 8 hours on a weekend day everything in the house spins out of control!  So I'm off to clean up after a fun filled weekend!

Hudson

My sweet little Hudson is getting so big.  

His language has taken off in the last few weeks.  He uses words he's never used before, and he usually uses them correctly the first time.  My favorite was "much better Mommy." And sentences galore.  I think 2 and a half is really just a treat when it comes to parenting.  Such a fun age.

He is trying to test the boundaries of his independence.  When we're going somewhere, I can usually count on him to take Reese or Wyatt's hand and head straight for the van.  Now he likes to stage sit ins by the tree in the front yard.  And he isn't as tolerant of his stroller at baseball and soccer as he used to be, but he's also not at the point where I know he can just go play in the sandbox!

The way that he says "Finley" melts my heart.  And it's usually said with a phrase like this - "Oh, sowwy Finney.  So siwwy goose."

Everything to this little guy is soooo silly goose.  If he falls down, he's "so silly goose."  If he's in trouble, I'm the "so silly goose."

 He's a big fan of making noise.  But all of my children are big noise makers.

He loves going to baseball games, and he's really getting into them this year.  He cheers for the team when they're batting.  He says, "Oh no!" or "Yay!" when they're making plays in the field.  He seems to enjoy watching the games.  His Baba says he's got a pretty good arm, too.

 Brian's let him run the bases after the games a few times, and he loves it.  Clearly, his big brother is too distracted by his friends to help his little brother learn where to go, and he left the instructions up to Reese.

 But he adores his big sister, so he was happy to follow her cowgirl lead! (It was pony picture day at school).  When he sees Reese after his nap or when he wakes up in the mornings, he runs and gives her the biggest hugs.

I can't believe this little guy is going to be two and a half next week!  It seems likes he was just born! He is genuinely such a fun, sweet boy.  He's very particular about some things (like his bed time routine.  Do not throw that off.), but he as a huge personality.  I can't believe he's going to be starting preschool in 4 months!

Reesie the Soccer Girl

Reese's soccer games are always fun to watch.  She has fun when she's got her head in the game, and she definitely tries hard to get the ball.

 She isn't quite as aggressive going after the ball as Wyatt, so she doesn't get it as often.  But she loves to play, and that's what really matters!

 Sometimes she plays defense, and she's a great sweeper.

 Sometimes she quickly remembers that she can't use her hands in soccer.

But she always knows where the ball is and chases after it!

Reese follows the ball well, but if there are three or four kids around it, she backs off.  Wyatt has been trying to play soccer with her at home so that she has the confidence to get in there to get the ball.  It was entirely his idea to give her these little "clinics," too.  I think it pains him to sit on the sidelines and watch her back off from the ball.

So the other day the kids were playing together, and I heard Reese shout, "I bet you can't get the ball past me Little Girl!"  To her brother.  I would say his lessons are working.  But I could do without the trash talk.

Wyatt's Baseball Season

 When I say that things are busy around here, I'm genuinely not exaggerating.   With practices and games four days a week, we're doing lots of shuffling around!  Sometimes I feel overwhelmed, but they're getting good physical activity, plus they're learning teamwork, good sportsmanship (not that Wyatt is all peachy at his games), making friends, and having a great time.  

Wyatt is loving his final season of t-ball.  I can't believe that this is it for him!  In the Fall he'll move up to coach pitch.

He and his Daddy have been working hard on his swing.

 But he's still upper cutting the ball sometimes!

 He takes his base running very seriously.  Especially the sliding.  And the giving of High 5's while he's sliding.

This little guy lives to play in the infield.  If he gets sent to the outfield (he plays out there at least one inning per game), he stands in "right field," but right behind first base.  He tries to be a part of every play!

 He got the out!

 He also takes his "pretend" pitching very seriously.

 I'm pretty sure that he sees himself like this when he's on the mound.

Source

Brian held a few practices over spring break and started working with the kids on double plays.  Wyatt got the out at second, and then tried to get it at first.

Last Monday was Jackie Robinson Day throughout Major League Baseball.  Wyatt had a game that day and told me that he wanted to wear Number 42, just like Jackie.  So I made him a "number" with painter's tape. He said, "I'm just like Jackie Robinson.  I play for the Dodgers and I'm wearing Number 42!"  We've done some talking about baseball's segregation (he has never really noticed a difference in skin color, but it's something he needs to know about, so bringing up the subject is hard), and he tells stories about how he would show the guys who didn't want Jackie Robinson to play in the Major League's his "ninja moves."  He currently wants to show everyone who he disagrees with his ninja moves!  He just says he doesn't understand why people wouldn't want Derek Jeter or Curtis Granderson or CC Sabathia on their teams!

Watching the little guy learn to play baseball is fun.  And exciting.  And sometimes frustrating (he plays ball just like his Dad.  They take the game and errors very seriously).  But watching him play baseball is one of my very favorite things!

Project 365: Week 15

If you follow me on Instagram , it's very possible that you've already seen all of these....

Tuesday, April 9

This little girl seriously loves her some food.  She eats it up!  She does have a habit of taking the spoon away from me when I'm feeding her something she doesn't like though!

 Wednesday, April 10

Reesie is chugging along in her readers!  She got her sixth reader last week!  She is very excited to learning and sounding out words now.

 Thursday, April 11

This little baby is crazy!  She pulled the cover of her car seat down, and then started kicking it!

 Friday, April 12

I was in the middle of Jillian Michaels' 30 Day Shred, and Hudson wasn't too happy about it!  He jumped off the couch and onto me while I was doing jumping jacks.  He's a little attached to me.  Dropping him off in the Y's childcare room while I work out has been a real treat!

 Saturday, April 13

Reesie after soccer, waiting for the boys to come out of the bathroom!

 Sunday, April 14

I was cleaning out my closet and these two pictures were on top of the photo albums.  There's a possibility Finley is my clone.  Also, Hudson has my smile.  And finally, I really loved that sweater.

 Monday, April 15

Wyatt had his 6 year check up, so we decided to get him a haircut while we were out that way.  I'm pretty sure this was his last time sitting in the police car.  I can't believe how big he is!

 And a few more:

She's teething, and this soft and silky lovey is one of her favorite things right now!

Laughing in the car after baseball on Saturday!

Sleepy little girl after she kept me up all night on Sunday..she gets to nap and I don't!  How fair is that?  Ha!

Wyatt's Birthday Pary: Part 2

After the actual party, we all set out to explore the zoo.  We do our best to stay in a group, but sometimes it takes a looooong time to explore with a group this big!

 

Sweet picture of all the cousins - plus Hunter!  Ha!  Colin, Reese, Sophie, Hunter, Wyatt, Derek, and Piper!

 Reesie and Natalie posing in the butterfly garden.

 Two tough guys.  Wyatt and Hunter go back a long time.  They love hanging out together.  They love playing baseball together more!

 

Hunter is Cardinals fan and does NOT like the Yankees at all, but he wore his old Yankees uniform for his buddy!

 This giraffe was just sitting there watching us all walk by! 

 Cousins!  Wyatt and Derek were sporting their Yankees shirts - Wyatt wore Cano and Derek was wearing Ichiro!

 Reesie and Sophie!

 The boys! Colin, Huddoo, Wyatt, Hunter, Tyler and Derek.

And the always rare family shot!  At least Hudson is looking at the camera!

Wyatt's Birthday Party: Part 1

Wyatt wanted to have his birthday party at the zoo again this year.  He celebrated his fourth birthday party there, followed that up with a fifth birthday party, and then decided to spend his sixth birthday party among the animals again!  They do a great job entertaining the kids, and I barely had to lift a finger, so it worked for me!

 

We had to make a tough call this year in terms of guests.  We have family friends and cousins that we all love, so they were definites.  But then we had school friends and baseball friends -we decided to keep it simple and invite his baseball team (they've all been together for a year now), and a few friends from soccer (really, his soccer friends are also either on his baseball team  or in his class).  We still had a packed room full of kids and parents that we know and love!

 

Wyatt surrounded by his cousin Colin and his buddy Jack, Jack's little brother Jesse, Evan, Hunter, Aden, and Audrey.

 

 

Hudson, Wyatt, and Reese actually touched that snake.  It was a Ball Python, and you could have offered to pay me a hundred dollars, and I would not have touched that thing!

Reesie really is a great big sister.  Hudson was a little afraid of the hedgehog (I know, the child had JUST touched a snake), so Reese hugged him while he did it.  She is definitely always aware of other people's feelings, and she's very compassionate.  One of the many things I love about this girl!

Wyatt wanted his party to have a Yankees theme, so we ordered plates and napkins and a banner.  I brought his pictures from my Instagram project and pinned them up along the banner.  His birthday cake was a copycat, we used this same design at his first birthday party, and the cupcakes have baseball stitching.  I use that when I make his team cupcakes at the end of every baseball season.

I don't think it could get any better for this little guy - surrounded by his buddies Aden and Hunter, and his cousin Derek.  Some of his favorite people next to him while he celebrated his birthday!

Of course after the party, we headed out to enjoy the zoo!  It was a beautiful day - and I'll be blogging more about that soon!